Kuldeep,cricketNostradamus

like England's Jofra Archer, Kuldeep Yadav, the chinaman bowler with loads of variations, also has the ability to predict future events, with his second ODI hat-trick being one of them. That is what the India spinner says.

Kuldeep is the only bowler from the country to have taken two ODI hattricks. He took his first hat-trick against Australia at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata in 2017, and two years later, repeated the feat against the West Indies.

"For the second hat-trick, you might not believe me, but I had told my mom that day that I would take a hat-trick.

"A lot of times, what I said turned out true. I guess it was just a random moment when we were batting against the Windies that I just realised I would take a hat-trick.

"Things panned out just the way I had planned," Kuldeep was quoted as saying by IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders.

Besides his fast bowling, Archer's prophesies have also earned him some following in recent years.

Going back to his first hat-trick,

Kuldeep said Mahendra Singh Dhoni helped him when he sought the veteran's advice for the third ball.

"I got my first wicket of Matthew Wade and then in the next ball I plucked Ashton Agar. For the third ball, I asked Mahi bhai what to bowl.

"When you have so many variations, you get confused. He just let me do whatever I felt was right but suggested that I kept it to the stumps," Kuldeep said.

"I spoke to Virat bhai and asked him if I could bowl from the other end. He said once Chahal's spell was over, I could bowl from that end. I struck a very good rhythm and started bowling in the spot."

The 25-year, who has flummoxed the best of batsmen with his accuracy and variations, added, "I kept a slip and gully in place. Luckily I bowled a good ball and got the edge.

"Getting a hat-trick at Eden Garden, that too in the first year of international cricket, is a big thing and this was one of the biggest moments of my life."

Talking about his expectations from the IPL, starting September 19 in the UAE, Kuldeep said that KKR can win the title with the right combinations.

"I had a strong feeling last year that we would win. Even in 2018, we were playing great cricket and I was sure we would win the title," said the Indian bowler.

"I remember the match we lost against Sunrisers Hyderabad (in qualifier 2). I was out of the ground because my spell was over. They were on 125 and I thought they would not go beyond 145. But Rashid Khan came into the middle and changed the game.

"We were just one step away from entering the final. It was a heart-breaking moment when we lost the match. If we can strike a good combination, we can certainly win it this year."

The first time Kim Clijsters entered the US Open, all the way back in 1999, she faced a certain someone by the name of Serena Williams.

All these years later, with play at Flushing Meadows set to begin Monday, threetime US Open champion Clijsters is back on the scene, out of retirement at age 37 and entered in a Grand Slam tournament for the first time since 2012.

And Williams, less than a month from turning 39, is still at the top of tennis, the runner-up in New York each of the past two years and at four of the past seven major championships.

Novak Djokovic is 23-0 in 2020, the best opening to a season for a man since he went 41-0 in 2011. He's also the only member of the Big Three in New York: Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are not in the draw.That trio has collected the past 13 Grand Slam trophies in a row; that includes five of the last seven for Djokovic alone. "Whether I have a bigger chance to win it because Roger and Rafa are not here, I really don't know," Djokovic said."I think it's unfair for me to talk about. That, in a way, is kind of disrespectful towards other players who are here."

Ramping up to top-flight competition after so many months away because of the pandemic could lead to injuries. During the Western & Southern Open, for example, Djokovic dealt with a neck issue and two-time major champion Naomi Osaka pulled out of that tourna

Players testing the Billie Jean King Nationals Tennis Center courts in practice or during competition at the Western & Southern Open - normally held in Ohio, it shifted to Flushing Meadows as part of a "controlled environment" - seemed pretty much in agreement: The speed is faster everywhere except maybe Ashe and Louis Amstrong Stadium.

Unbeaten Djokovic

Injuries?

Court speed

Hawkeye live

There will be line judges only on the two largest courts. Everywhere else, a chair umpire will be assisted by electronic line-calling - removing the human element in the name of social distancing.